Abstract Much literature attributes the association between perinatal complications and maternal reports of stress before and during pregnancy to processes induced, or indicated, by high levels of the neuropeptide CRH. The empirical evidence for this attribution, however, remains mixed. We would contribute more definitive evidence by using data from panel studies in the United States to test several presumed links among stressful environments, levels of CRH and other stress biomarkers, and perinatal complications. We would also conduct proof-of-principle studies to determine the feasibility of linking data describing perinatal stress-related biomarkers, health status, and early school success of all live births in British Columbia. Such linkage, if feasible, would allow the "next step" research of determining whether exogenous stressors on the population affect perinatal and subsequent development of children and whether any such effects differ by socioeconomic status.